On 4/20/1994, Best of the Web was born and today we celebrate 25 years! BOTW has evolved from an awards site, naming the which websites were the “Best of the Web” (there were only 10,000 websites to choose from back then) to what we are today, an Internet Directory still packing a punch.

We want to take this opportunity to thank YOU, our loyal customers, our new customers, and our partners who have submitted your websites and businesses over the years. Without your businesses being listed and added, Best of the Web would not be where we are today.

Whether you have a listing on BOTW.org, your business on BOTW Local, or your blog is included on BOTW Blog Directory , you are a part of our success and we appreciate you! We work hard to keep our directory up to date as a trusted resource for our website visitors, a spot for customers leaving reviews of their businesses on BOTW Local, and a place for enthusiasts looking for a blog on their favorite topic.

BOTW PROMO

In honor of our birthday, you can save 50% on all submissions! Please use the code 25YEARS at checkout until 4/24/2019!

As we approach our 25th birthday here at Best of the Web, we are looking back and taking inventory of how far we have come, and how the Best of the Web Directories have evolved over the years. The Internet was a different place in 1994. There was no Google, no Facebook, no Netflix. You had to pay per minute to access the Internet using your AOL floppy disk the mailman delivered along with your bills and letters from your pen-pals. Then one day in Buffalo, NY, a college student came up with ‘Best of the Web’ and complied a list of what voters thought were the best websites on the web!

As the World Wide Web advanced, and more websites were published, Best of the Web became a directory of websites for users to quickly find what they were interested in, to find businesses, and for students to research topics with ease. We went international and launched a UK Directory, the Best of the Web Local, and to this day, each directory is expanding and more and more businesses are being added every day!

We are proud to be featured at the top of the list published by Search Engine Journal as one of their 21 Web Directories That Still Have Value in 2019. 25 years is a long time in Internet years, and we are committed to continue being a source of organized and updated information for businesses, students, and consumers looking for a collection relevant websites and businesses.

Social Media: The final next frontier. Perhaps you are already so accustomed to seeing sharing and liking options online that they have long since faded into the background of your favorite websites. When you step outside of simply clicking a button on a page, however, you’ll find that sharing and connecting with your favorite businesses through social media has many benefits. If your Facebook news feed has morphed into a chaotic influx of fan page advertisements and status updates, fear not. We have no intention of spamming you. Instead, we’d like to provide you with a few reasons why the BOTW page should be one of your top Facebook Likes, and why it’s worth sharing.

Share Your Listing
You now have the ability to “like” any given category in the Web Directory. For instance, the Bob Dylan category is liked by a handful of users. What does this mean for your listing or sponsorship? Aside from being able to express appreciation for your niche, liking a category will automatically post a link to it on your Facebook Wall. Therefore by clicking the Like button at the top of the category where your listing or sponsorship is located, it is instantly shared with your entire Facebook network.

You can also mark your approval of a category through Google’s +1 button. This will store the category, in a sense bookmarking it, in your Google account and share it as a recommendation when your contacts search related items through the mainstream search engine. The combination of having reliable directory listings with social media sharing capabilities creates the opportunity to potentially reach thousands of viewers.

Promo, please!
We get countless emails every day asking where to find announcements about upcoming or currently active promotions. Aside from right here, the answer is Facebook. By liking our Facebook page, it will not only appear in your news feed the moment a new promotion is announced, but you’ll also be made privy to opportunities to win coupons and other prizes every week.

Once you like BOTW on Facebook, stay tuned for updates and the opportunity to participate in the Trivia Challenges. You can win a Trivia Challenge, and the monetary prize that comes with it, by being the first BOTW fan to post the correct answer to the day’s challenge. Prizes range from coupons on BOTW directory submissions, Amazon gift cards, and prizes from other select partners. Any fan can win a coupon one time per week, and is eligible to win a gift card once every month.

Vacation with BOTW & Win
If you’re a true fan of Best of the Web, you probably have a t-shirt or a mug from one of the many conferences and gatherings over the years. Now that gear can win you money through the “Guess Where BOTW’s Been” contest. Simply take a photo with your BOTW gear set in an *exotic location and email it to contest@bestoftheweb.com. Anyone who participates by sending a picture will automatically win a $25 Amazon gift card. If your photo is later posted on the page under the “Guess Where BOTW’s Been” contest, you’ll win an additional $100 Amazon gift card.

These are just a few ways to get the most out of the social media being implemented through the Web Directory. So, go ahead, click “Like” on our sidebar widget. Whether you’re looking for additional attention for your newly added listing or sponsorship, or are looking for an available coupon to help cut the cost of your next submission, getting involved through Facebook can only help your cause.

*Exotic locations do not have to be tropical; however, locations must be identifiable through a landmark or other prominent feature. Those who submit via email must include their full name, contact information, and the name of the location pictured. Emailed photo submissions will be accepted through August 2011.

I suppose now that we’re officially on the new URL and have the new interface in place it’s time to thank the folks that made it happen. A hearty thanks to the guys at Beers Design for setting up this WordPress theme.

The old one was getting a little threadbare, didn’t allow pictures of the size I’d have liked, and just looked its age. This is a vast improvement. I’d also like to thank our own Rob Schmidt for working with them to get it done. You guys did a great job, and that makes mine easier. Gracias gents.

And Another Writer to Enter the Fray

Also, rumor here at BOTW-land is that one of the talented folks from corporate is going to join me in the blog, so you can look forward to upcoming posts from Danielle. It’ll be nice to have another hand at the oar and a different perspective. You can find her bio info on the BOTW Corporate website. Actually if you’re reading this, that’s where you are now. Just hit the button up there that says “About Us.“

If you’re reading this blog
You probably take part in one or more webmaster forums as well. Do a quick search on whichever ones you frequent, and you’ll find a few threads named “What is the best directory submission software”.

Answer: Depends on the directories to which you submit

If you’re sending submissions to auto-accept directories…
…that’ll take anything that comes into the queue, whatever software gets it there does the job. A bot does the submission, a bot does the acceptance, why quibble over the small differences.

In other words, neither of them does a good job.

Now WHY you’d bother submitting to those is a whole ‘nuther topic, but mass sends by bots at least take less time than doing it manually, and as it’s a waste of time to start with, might as well waste less of it.

If you’re submitting to directories with a human on the acceptance end…
Why bother sending mass bot submissions? They’re generally garbage, so if the directory is worth getting into, they’ll probably get deleted the same way they arrived… by a few quick database routines.

Needless to say our commercial queues are pretty free of spam. For some reason people don’t send a thousand near identical submissions when their Mastercard/Visa is attached to each, but our free queues are occasionally the targets of the guys that charge their clients a fee for shipping stuff even they know will get deleted.

“Hope springs eternal in the human breast….” ~ Alexander Pope

“Heh. Heh heh! He said ‘breast’.” ~ Beavis and Butthead

Every forum that has a Buy/Sell/Trade section…
…has a stack of guys offering directory submission services. Even some that assure you they’re doing it manually often have package pricing that allows you to get a zillion submissions for $50. If you utilize a service that offers to break the bounds of not only economics but space and time… you’re just setting yourself up for a fall.

Hey, just trying to look out for you
To those that are out there offering a zillion directory adds for a few bucks, don’t worry, anybody that buys the idea you’re doing it “manually” probably can’t read either.

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